


A Snowflake in Hell

by 1234IDeclareATimeWar



Category: RWBY
Genre: Angst, Evil Winter, F/M, Fake Character Death, I literally had a character concept and wrote this, dark winter, enjoy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-04
Updated: 2020-04-04
Packaged: 2021-02-28 18:54:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,289
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23482003
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/1234IDeclareATimeWar/pseuds/1234IDeclareATimeWar
Summary: During the chaos following the fall of beacon, sometimes soldiers are lost, sometimes they're found by something worse.
Relationships: Qrow Branwen/Winter Schnee
Comments: 4
Kudos: 14





	A Snowflake in Hell

“WHO ARE YOU?” Qrows voice echoes off the stone as the click of running heels slows to a stop, a laugh emanating from the figures throat as the chase came to a halt. Qrow was breathing heavily, the remnants of a scar from the fall causing flames to burn in his chest. But the white haired figure standing there barely breathed at all. “Hands where I can see them!” He shouted, leveling harbinger at her back, blood dripping down the side of his face from the cut she’d put there after slamming his head into a wall. The figures gray sleeves drooped as she half rose her hands near her head, almost mockingly as she chuckled.

“Who the hell are you?” he asked again, voice growling as it echoed. Her laugh grew louder, more vicious as her shoulders shook. Qrow felt a twinge of familiarity in his chest at the sound, like a song he used to remember.

“Oh pretty bird…” she breathed, turning her head slightly and get a better look at his face, her features indiscernible in the dark. “What’s the matter?” She lowered her hands and turned around to lock her icy blue eyes with his own. “Don’t you recognize me?” Winter.

Qrows grip on Harbinger faltered slightly as he stared into eyes he never thought he’d see again. The last time he had seen her she had been furious with him, brandishing her sword and berating him for starting a fight and getting her in trouble, getting her sent home. The hurt and venom in her voice barely penetrated the haze of alcohol he had been drowning in that day, and he regretted not pulling her in for a kiss. Not holding her and telling her how much he still loved her, confessing his hatred of himself for letting it get so bad between them. Not stopping her from getting on that airship. Watching it fly away never to be seen again, only in wreckage with griffons picking at the remains.

The dark lip stain highlighted her smirk as she took a step towards him, her tall black heels clicking on the concrete. Her long white hair that he loved to run his fingers through was tied tightly in its customary bun, that stray curl framing her face. Her skin was more yellowed than he remembered, completely smooth and barely tweaking as her face changed. And her customary white jacket had been replaced with a deep red that was almost black, a gray shirt that fell off her shoulders and had a triangle free on her chest where he could see her breathing so slightly. Part of him wanted to rush towards her, wrap her in an embrace he had been dying to do since her disappearance, but this made no sense. The Ice Queen had been dead for months.

“Winter? Snowflake… How?” She stepped closer, the glaciers of her eyes that he had worked so hard to melt were more like glass tempered under destruction as she gazed at him, she laughed again.

“Poor birdy. Must have missed me so much…” She had stepped around Harbinger, so close to his chest as her red lips twisted into an almost feral smile. Qrow remembered the wreckage, he was the one that found it after all, the blood and the scorched ground, how he frantically searched through the wreckage for her slight frame. And the image of the blood soaked broach laying so perfectly on the ground. “Just bad luck.” Someone had said when he reported the downed ship, bringing the black box to the atlesian specialists. “Freak accident, attacked by Grimm.” Bad luck. Qrow spent the last few months searching for her in the bottom of a bottle and now here she was, standing in front of him, still so beautiful. He wanted to kiss her, to hold her in his arms and never let her go again but something held him back... Black had taken over the clean white coat that was her uniform, her broach had been replaced with a dragon’s head, and there on her back was Salem’s symbol.

She touched his face gently stroking his jaw with her thumb, her gloved hand cool against his skin, none of the warmth he had come to know in her touch. Her brilliant eyes locked onto his and she leaned close, their breaths mingling between them. He stared, breath catching in his chest as she leaned forward and kissed him. Familiarity and warmth clouded his senses, and he dropped Harbinger to wrap his arms around her. Eight months. Eight months since the last time he had held her and he never wanted to let go. But still something felt so wrong in this moment, the usually fresh snowfall scent of her skin had darkened, mixing with smoke like a fire burned on the horizon and the scent of burning wood had swirled across the white expanse clouding the scent. Her skin was colder than it had ever been, and while she had initiated the kiss she was letting him control it. Winter never gave up control of anything that easily.

The knife in his stomach also felt incredibly wrong.

Qrow broke the kiss with a gasp, staggering back off the blade that was held so perfectly still as she watched him fall back against the wall behind him, betrayal and pain flashing through his mind all at once as he looked up at her.

“Winter, what the hell!?” his voice was hoarse as he grabbed for the slowly spreading red stain on the front of his shirt. Her blue eyes were empty and cold as she stared down at him silently for a moment before a cruel smile broke her features.

“Aww poor birdy.” She breathed, taking a knee in front of him to meet his eyes, red flashing across the blue for a brief moment. “You still don’t see what you did, do you?” her hand reached out to grab his jaw, her grip unnaturally strong as she held him still.

“Win…” She silenced him with a finger to his lips and shook her head.

“You’ve said enough.” Disgust crept on the edges of her voice as she held his gaze. Frigid glaciers had taken hold of her eyes, cold unforgiving and heartless. “Your little stunt is what brought this about Branwen.” She growled out, “you sent me home like a little girl caught playing after dark, far ahead of schedule, and what happened to my ship? Taken down by Grimm.” She brushed a bit of blood away with her thumb, the storm behind her gaze growing in fury. “Salem took your little snowflake Qrow, your bad luck drove me right into hell.” She dropped her hand from his face, rose back to her feet once more, and sheathed her blade.

She took in the broken huntsman before her, slumped against the wall, ruby red eyes staring up at her with utter betrayal, and a hand reaching for her.

“Winter…” He breathed, his hand shaking. “I don’t know what she’s done, or told you, but we can fix this. Come back, we can help you.” He gazed at her, praying for a break in that icy façade he had melted years ago. For a moment he swore he could see the old Winter in there, but it was quickly gone as she sharply slapped his hand away.

“Consider yourself lucky that Salem doesn’t want you dead Branwen.” She growled, turning on her heel, but she paused looking over her shoulder. “Next time I’ll slit your throat.” And she was gone.

Qrow thudded his head back against the wall as she disappeared, blindly dialing a number on his Scroll.

“I’m gonna need an Evac…”

**Author's Note:**

> I'm not sure if this is gonna be continued or not, depends on how I feel about it.


End file.
